1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Aft Deck Mahogany

I’ve been fitting mahogany panels and solid stock parts on the aft deck since Fall 2019. It’s been slow-going, but it’s coming together and looking better with each passing day.

Remember these?

Way back in 2013, we installed the new mahogany toe rails on the boat. The lumber I used started out as 8/4 thick, which was about 2-1/8″. Once the rails were the right shape, I had them resawn down to 1-3/4. The resaw kerf took close to 1/8″, leaving some unused but pretty mahogany boards that were 1/4″ heavy in thickness. I’ve been storing those ever since, thinking they’d come in real handy…and they finally have!

Dewalt thickness planer resized the boards to a consistent 1/4″

That’s pretty stuff

That’ll look lots better than painted aluminum and spray foam insulation

I’m going to be using epoxy on the joint between the two boards, so I applied a couple coats of varnish to keep the grain clean.

Tapping screw holes in the aluminum frame

One board fitted and screwed in place

Epoxy thickened with wood flour is on the joint edge

After installing the second board, I left it to cure overnight.

Next day, the two boards are a single unit

Next, I cut a backing piece for the joint

There should never be any movement between the two boards, but I don’t trust a 1/4″ joint to hold permanently on a boat. The backing piece should help the joint stay together.

Ready for glue

Next day, the epoxy is cured

Next, I started putting a radius on the visible corner using my ShopSmith jointer

I finished the radius with a hand planer

Then I hit it with my Mirka sander with a foam pad

Ready for varnish

Back to the nearby mahogany plywood paneling

Beveled, sanded, and ready for varnish

I rolled and tipped Spar Varnish on the panels

The satin varnish is shiny because it was still wet

The new LED lighting on the aft deck makes it easier to paint even when the sun is setting.

The back-side of the panel is coated with epoxy

I explained in the last article that the mahogany corner piece was a bit too thick. I removed material from it and also from the back of the panel so everything will fit together nicely.

I also wetted out the backside of the corner piece with epoxy

My theory on encapsulating all of the wood with epoxy is that it’ll save me work later on down the road. If water and even humidity can’t get into the wood, it’ll never rot and the top coat finish should be very stable for a long time.

With no way to use clamps, I rely on push sticks instead…lots of them

Next, I routed material off of the back of the last panel where it will join to the mahogany corner piece

Next day, all the push sticks came down

Showtime!

Wetted out with epoxy

Wood flour-thickened epoxy goes on the joints

And then everything gets glued, screwed, clamped, and push-sticked into place. The upper corner piece turned out really nice.

Wipe excess epoxy from the joints with alcohol and let it cure

That’s a wrap for the starboard side mahogany plywood paneling on the aft deck. Next I’ll be working with the 1/4″ board solid stock to cover up the rest of the aluminum framing and spray foam insulation. I also need to make mahogany box sections that go all the way along the teak deck from the helm doors back to the transom.

Next up in our 1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: More Aft Deck Mahogany